


late night at the 7/11

by klfette



Category: Danny Phantom, Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Aliens, Gen, Ghosts, Mystery, Paranormal, the boys r Weird
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:01:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23953489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/klfette/pseuds/klfette
Summary: Steven is on his trip across the country, and Danny is just trying to get through the night. Turns out half ghosts and half aliens don't mix very well.
Comments: 26
Kudos: 243





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Danny and Steven are both 17 in this, and Phantom Planet didn't happen.

Danny was picking up late-night ghost hunting provisions. The 7/11 loomed ahead, painting the parking lot with its cold light. The door jingled as he entered, and he nodded to the cashier, a scruffy-looking man in his twenties or thirties. The store was empty, and he let muscle memory guide him to the back wall of fridges. He scanned the shelves for an energy drink that looked like it didn’t taste like battery acid. 

He turned away from the energy drinks, unimpressed, and instead made his way to the coffee station on his right. He grabbed the large-sized cup from underneath the counter and poured it three-quarters full of dark roast coffee.

“You know that’s decaf, right?”

Danny jumped, and swiveled around. Further down the aisle, a boy was staring down the pastries. He seemed to be a normal teenager, around Danny’s age. He was tall, with dark brown curly hair and a pink jacket. He had a heavy build, though his face was soft with baby fat that had yet to be tamped down by adulthood.

Danny reread the writing on the side of the coffee pot. Yep, decaf. He sighed heavily and grabbed another cup. “Thanks.” He filled that one, making sure to grab the correct coffee pot this time. He glanced over again at the other boy, who had picked up a plastic-wrapped muffin and was reading the sticker.

Something about him was… strange, Danny noted. His skin seemed almost glassy, with no imperfections and an evenness of color that looked as if it was photoshopped and his hair fell into perfect ringlets. Despite his intimidating size, he gave off a vibe of welcoming and kindness. He seemed instantly magnetic, and Danny felt on an instinctual level that this was a person he could turn to for protection.

It made him uncomfortable. Danny was not the type of person to instantly trust strangers, no matter how nice they seemed. Years of bullying had drilled that into him. Anxiety settled in his stomach. His ghost sense hadn’t gone off, but it was unusual that Danny hadn’t noticed him when he entered the store, or heard the door jingle to announce his entrance. He decided to investigate.

“Hey, uh, do you want this cup? I gotta buy it anyway, so if you like decaf you can have it.” Danny forced a smile.

“Oh, sure!” The boy responded with a smile of his own. “I don’t mind it.”

He joined Danny at the coffee counter, and took the rejected cup of coffee. “I’m Steven.”

“Danny.”

Steven grabbed a fistful of vanilla creamer pods and began pouring them one by one. “I wish this wasn’t so wasteful, but I like my coffee sweet, so what’re you gonna do?”

Danny let out a polite chuckle, trying to ignore his rising nausea. Now that Steven was next to him, it felt like his instincts were fighting with each other. Part of him wanted to trust Steven fully, to start up a pleasant conversation, to tell him whatever he asked. The other part of him, the part that was razor sharp and always prepared for trouble, was fighting back, yelling that this wasn’t normal, something was off, this was wrong--

* * *

  
  


Steven pulled into the 7/11 parking lot. It was late, though not yet past midnight. He had been planning to stop several hours ago, but he had missed his exit. He was somewhere in Michigan, or maybe Illinois, on the outskirts of a small town. There weren’t any hotels in town, Steven had checked, so he was resigned to sleeping in the car.

But first, a snack.

Some bells on the door jingled as he entered, and he saw the place was empty, save for the cashier, who looked tired and bored.

“Hello!”

The cashier gave a half-hearted wave in response.

Steven wandered into one of the aisles, taking in his options. Beef jerky didn’t sound appetizing, and he needed something more substantial than the bags of sugary candy could offer.

The bells on the door jingled. Steven moved to the next aisle.

He looked at the coffee for a moment before deciding that no, he did not need caffeine right now (or ever, to be honest), and moving further down to look at whatever baked goods the store had to offer.

He was interrupted by the sound of another person shuffling to get coffee.

He glanced over, and then he couldn’t help but stare.

His late-night shopping companion was a kid, maybe 14, short with scruffy dark hair and a too-big hoodie. He looked ill, with dark circles under his eyes and a greenish pallor. Even though his body was obscured by baggy clothing, it was obvious he was tense. As he lifted the coffee pot, his sleeve fell back and purple bruises peeked out from behind the fabric. Anxiety and exhaustion clung to him like a personal cloud.

As his therapist liked to point out, it was not Steven’s job to fix other people. But that didn’t mean that he couldn’t be concerned when there was obviously a person in distress, and this kid was basically screaming for help.

“You know that’s decaf right?” Steven said, figuring that the least he could do was ensure that he got the right coffee.

He started, and turned to Steven. The anxiety shrouding him eased for a moment, before building back up. Outwardly, however, he relaxed his shoulders and sighed before turning back to get another cup.

“Hey, do you want this cup? I gotta buy it anyway, so if you like decaf it’s yours.” For such a small person, his voice was clear and confident. It had an air of casualty that would’ve seemed genuine, had Steven not been able to feel the turmoil slowly mounting inside of him.

“Oh, sure! I don’t mind it.” Steven didn’t really care much for decaf, but he didn’t really want to leave the kid alone. “I’m Steven.”

“Danny.” He was mumbling now, distinct from the confidence he had exuded earlier. 

The anxiety seemed to be morphing into fear, or maybe something else entirely. Steven made some sort of remark about his coffee, though the sheer force of emotion that Danny was giving off was distracting. It felt like he was watching a horror film, dread and terror melting off of Danny and sinking into Steven. He felt the urge to _leave_ , to _get away._

And then Danny collapsed on the floor, and the feeling was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Danny’s chest hurt like he had been punched. His head ached. His ears were buzzing as if he were surrounded by wasps. Immediately, he assumed that he had been knocked out during a fight. His heart raced with the realization that he wasn’t in ghost form. What if somebody had seen him? What if the ghost was around and people were getting hurt?

Danny snapped open his eyes, prepared to be sitting in a pile of rubble. But instead, he was surprised to find himself staring at the unperturbed face of some cereal mascot. The floor beneath him was not a mess of broken drywall, but an ugly faux-marble marked with dust and coffee stains.

He forced himself into a sitting position, and his vision faded out to dark static as a wave of dizziness passed over him. He swooned forward, but before he could fall again, a hand grabbed his shoulder. 

This shook Danny from his stupor. The hand stung against his skin, like when he would sit on his leg for too long and the blood rushed back into his foot after moving. He flinched away, and jumped up, trying to force away the vertigo that threatened to down him again.

“Are you okay?” The static in his ears turned into words, but it sounded like they were coming from a bad radio.

Through blurred vision, Danny saw a pink jacket, and his memory cleared. He was just getting some coffee and the boy- Steven, he recalled- did something. Didn’t he? Danny didn’t just fall to the floor for no reason. Was Steven a ghost? Maybe he had just missed his ghost sense going off. 

Danny steadied himself on the counter next to him, almost knocking over a cup of coffee. 

“Hey, if you need to sit down it’s cool.” The staticky voice- Steven’s, probably- said. 

“Should I like, call an ambulance?” Another voice chipped in, this one older and hoarser, but more clear.

“No! Don’t- don’t do that.” Danny said, anxiety returning from its respite as the world shifted into focus.

“Do you need a ride home?” Steven asked.

Danny’s immediate thought was  _ hell no, not from you _ , but he found himself nodding his head regardless. After all, Steven was just trying to help, and why shouldn’t he accept it? Why shouldn’t he just give in, and let Steven take care of him? Why not just let him  _ protect him? _

The world went fuzzy again, and the nausea he felt earlier returned. Steven took a step closer to him. The nausea turned to pain. The anxiety turned to terror.

Danny realized he needed to leave, and he needed to leave  _ now. _

He shoved past Steven, ignoring the stinging he felt where his shoulder had made contact with the other boy’s chest, and past the wide-eyed cashier. 

He flung his body towards the door, not noticing nor caring if his feet touched the ground.

And Danny ran.

* * *

After Danny fell, Steven was frozen. His mind hadn’t quite adjusted from the rapid switch from mundane to overwhelming, and then back again. He hadn’t felt such an intense fear in so long, not since-

Well, not since his last bad flashback, but that was different. That fear had come from him, and this one he had just caught secondhand. And boy, did he really take the brunt of it. Usually other people’s emotions are just there, lingering in the air. They don’t usually affect him, not directly. Other people’s moods don’t shove away his own, infecting him until it’s all he can feel.

Danny stirred at his feet, pushing himself into a sitting position. Steven knelt next to him, and when he saw Danny leaning precariously, he reached out to steady him.

Steven barely had his hand on Danny for a second when Danny sprung up, almost weightlessly. His skin was ice, seeping coldness into Steven’s fingers despite barely making contact. It almost burnt. Steven put his hand on the shelf next to him to pull himself up, noting that the cold metal and plastic felt warm in comparison. 

“Are you okay?” Steven asked, unsure of what else to do. He was paralyzed, torn between the desire to figure out what was happening, and the primal knowledge that this was something he shouldn’t mess with.

Danny didn’t respond, instead leaning on the counter. For a brief second, Steven thought he was going to knock over his hot coffee, but Danny’s hand seemed to pass right through the cup before settling on a clear spot just behind it. Steven blinked. It was probably just a trick of the light, right?

“Hey, if you need to sit down, that’s fine.” Steven stammered. 

He noticed a nervousness coming from behind him. “Should I like, call an ambulance?” THe cashier asked.

The fear coming off Danny, briefly absent, returned as he stuttered a protest. It wasn’t quite as intense as it had been before his fainting spell, but it still hurt, holding Steven’s gut in a vise. He needed to calm Danny down somehow, before the fear took him over again.

“Do you need a ride home?” Steven offered, even though he’d much rather spend as little time as possible around Danny. 

Danny’s eyes, already unfocused, became glassy, and he began to nod his head. But the cloud of fear was kicking back up around him again. Steven knew he probably should not get closer, he should probably leave and never come back. But there was a person in pain, and Steven was never one to leave someone hurting. So he grit his teeth and stepped towards Danny.

This wasn’t the best idea, as it turns out. Danny’s eyes opened wide with terror and he rammed himself into Steven, forcing him to step aside. Steven felt the cold seep into him again, and he heard the jingle of the door, and when he turned around, Danny was gone.

Stunned and unsure what to do, Steven reached for his coffee cup. His fingers closed around it, but he reeled back when the heat stung his hand. The palm, which he had used to steady Danny, was an angry shade of red.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just hoping I can finish this haha! Maybe get some explanations next chapter? I've got them but I need to figure out how I want to work it in yknow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I've been blown away by the amount of support this fic got! Thanks guys! 
> 
> I don't know how good this chapter is as I am now flying by the seat of my pants with only the vaguest direction to this story. Let me know what you think!

There’s some people who, when faced with unnatural horror, are perfectly content to say “wow, that was crazy” and put it out of their minds. Steven was not one of those people. Steven wanted to have the whole picture, even if it was unpleasant. His pursuit of truth had not led him astray when he was learning about his mother and gemkind, and that same drive followed him cross country.

His interaction with Danny was strange, even for him. The feelings coming off Danny, while difficult to pin down, were familiar. Beneath the fear, there was an emptiness, a feeling that left his mouth tasting like dirt and metal. It was defined more by what it wasn’t. It wasn’t happiness, sadness, fear, or anger. It was distinct, and rare, and Steven considered himself lucky enough that he had only been faced with it twice.

It was the feeling Lars had felt when he slammed against the rock of homeworld, the feeling Jasper felt when Steven smashed her gem to pieces.

It was unsettling, and raw, and painful.

It was death.

Steven’s hands shook and he clenched them into fists, ignoring his stinging palm. “Do you know who that is? I want to make sure he’s okay.”

“That’s Danny Fenton.” The cashier responded, uneasy. “He comes in pretty regularly. He’s weird.”

“Weird?”

“It’s just… look, you’re not a local but…” He shifted his weight from foot to foot, avoiding eye contact. “Amity Park’s a strange town. And everyone knows that the Fentons are the source of it. It’s probably better for you to move on.”

“I just want to make sure he’s okay, though” Steven pushed.

“If you really want, the Fenton’s live at the corner of Anson and Lutz. You can’t miss it. But seriously, Amity’s not a safe place for outsiders.” The cashier cautioned. “Anyway. We close at midnight, so…”

Steven bought a muffin and left.

Steven reclined in the passenger seat of the Dondai, a blanket over his waist and a travel pillow around his neck. His hand had stopped hurting, and the red had faded, although it still tingled with static if he touched it. A similar sensation, although less severe, danced across his chest. It was distracting enough that he didn’t really want to drive.

The plan was to visit the Fenton’s tomorrow, check in and make sure Danny was okay. Steven wasn’t sure if he wanted to investigate further. He was intrigued by the alleged strangeness of Amity Park, but at the same time the town made him uneasy. He hadn’t noticed it before, but the whole area felt a little hostile, like the land itself didn’t want him there. And that was just on the outskirts of town-- who knew what the actual city was like?

Steven turned on his phone and typed out a text message.

From: Steven, 12:08 AM

To: Pearl

Hey P, Im settling in for the night. Place called Amity Park in Michigan I think - you or the other gems ever heard of it?

He set his phone down and closed his eyes, but was interrupted shortly thereafter by a notification.

From: Pearl, 12:10 AM

To: Steven

Dear Steven,

Glad to hear from you! No, I have not heard of it. I don’t recall there being a whole lot of gem activity in that area, so we never visited. Take pictures! Don’t forget to brush your teeth.

Love you,

Pearl.

Steven placed his phone in his cup holder, rolled over, and forced himself to sleep.

Steven couldn’t feel anything. No warmth, no cold, not even the comfort of ground against his feet. His vision was filled with swirling fog, electric green and icy blue, laid against an endless blackness. It reminded him a little bit like the void of space, empty and silent. He tried to turn his body, but found himself stuck in place.

“It wasn’t like that. It didn’t feel normal.” A voice sounded in Steven’s ears with no discernable source. The fog resonated in time with the words. “It was terrifying, but still somehow comforting?”

“Probably a ghost, then.” Another voice chipped in, a male, this one clearer and obviously coming from in front of Steven. “Maybe he’s got like, mind control powers like Freakshow. But without the staff.”

“I don’t know. My ghost sense didn’t go off, and he didn’t really… feel like a ghost, if that makes sense.” 

“I dunno, dude. We’ll see if he comes back.”

“I’d be just fine if I never saw him again.” There was a pause. “Do you have the first aid kit? I’ve got a horrible headache.”

“Oh yeah, here.”

The fog faded away, and Steven was left alone in a silent void.

* * *

Danny flew, somehow in his ghost form, and he kept flying until he found himself in Tucker’s room. His friend sat at his computer, involved in his gaming. Danny collapsed on his bed, transforming back into his human form in a flash of bright light.

Tucker removed his headphones and swiveled around his chair before letting out a relieved sigh. “Oh thank god, you aren’t bleeding out again. Call next time, please.” He turned back around. “What’s up, man?”

“Just had a really weird night.” Danny responded, his voice hoarse. “Weirder than normal, I mean.”

“Oh yeah?”

“I was getting snacks and I met this guy. A teenager, I guess. He made me feel strange.” Danny fiddled with a blanket.

“Oh, you need advice on asking him out, huh? You came to the right place.” Tucker laughed, not taking his eyes off the computer screen.

“No! Not like that. I literally passed out when he was talking to me. Part of me was like, hey you gotta trust this guy, but another part of me was telling me to get out of there.”

Tucker appeared to have finished his level, and he clicked out of a few tabs before turning his full attention to Danny, grinning. “Still not convinced that it’s not a crush.”

“It wasn’t like that. It didn’t feel normal. It was terrifying, but still somehow comforting?” He noticed a dull headache, likely the result of adrenaline wearing off. He sat up and massaged his temples.

Tucker sat back and crossed his arms. “Probably a ghost, then. Maybe he’s got mind control powers like Freakshow.” Danny opened his mouth to object- Freakshow wasn’t even a ghost. “But without the staff.”

“I don’t know. My ghost sense didn’t even go off, and he didn’t really… feel like a ghost, if that makes sense.” It was almost the opposite, in fact. Over the years, Danny had grown adept at sensing ghosts, even before his ghost sense went off. He could feel when a ghost was approaching by the way his core felt tense and cold, and he could even identify a few of his most familiar foes just by how his core felt. But Steven felt different, warming him up somewhat. He buzzed with aliveness in a way that a ghost couldn’t, and even humans occasionally fail to do.

“I dunno dude, we’ll see if he comes back.” Tucker shrugged.

“I’d be just fine if I never saw him again.” Danny’s mild headache was threatening to turn into a full-on migraine. He shut his eyes, and focused on his breathing. “Do you have the first aid kit? I’ve got a horrible headache.”

“Oh yeah, here.” Tucker tossed him a bag. Danny fished out some painkillers, popping two. He did his best to put Steven out of his mind. He was relieved when his headache rapidly faded, and he laid back down on the bed.

“Cool if I stay here for a bit?”

“What am I gonna do, say no?” 

**Author's Note:**

> I don't really know where I'm going from here but I'm hoping that I can update this with at least one more chapter! I haven't had an idea take life like this in a while. 
> 
> Hope y'all liked it, and if you have any questions or anything feel free to also reach out to me on my tumblr: bougonia.tumblr.com


End file.
